c. 45, s. 12, and the 5 & 6 Wm. 4, c. 51, s. 5, and that it is expedient that none of the herein before mentioned offences should be punishable with death, and enacts," that if any person shall after the commencement of this act (1st October, 1837) be convicted of any of the offences hereinbefore mentioned, such person shall not suffer death, or have sentence of death awarded against him or her for the same, but shall be liable, at the discretion of the court, to be transported beyond the seas for life, or for any term not less than seven years, or to be imprisoned (1) for any term not exceeding four years, nor less than two years.' Sec. 2 recites the 2 & 3 Wm. 4, c. 123, s. 1, (m) the 3 & 4 Wm. 4, c. 51, Persons pus. 27, and the 3 & 4 Wm. 4, c. 44, s. 3, and enacts that "so much of the nishable with three lastly hereinbefore in part recited acts as relates to the transportation for life, &c., punishment of persons convicted of offences for which they are by the recited liable under the said act of the second and third years, or the said acts, how act of the third and fourth years respectively of his late Majesty's punishable. reign, to be transported for life, shall from and after the commencement of this act be and the same is hereby repealed; and that from and after the passing of this act, every person convicted of any of such offences shall be liable, at the discretion of the court, to be transported beyond the seas for the term of the natural life of such person, or for any term not less than seven years, or to be imprisoned (n) for any term not exceeding four years nor less than two years." ment. By sec. 3, "when any person shall be convicted of any offence Hard labour punishable under this act, for which imprisonment may be awarded, with imprisonit shall be lawful for the court to sentence the offender to be imprisoned, with or without hard labour, in the common gaol or house of correction; and also to direct that the offender shall Solitary conbe kept in solitary confinement for any portion or portions of such finement. imprisonment, not exceeding one month at any one time, and not exceeding three months in any one year, as to the court in its discretion shall seem meet." The 1 Vict. c. 90, s. 5, reciting that "by the laws now in force it is lawful for the court before whom any person shall be convicted of certain offences for which imprisonment or imprisonment with hard labour may be awarded, to direct that the offender shall be kept in solitary confinement for the whole or any portion or portions of such imprisonment, or of such imprisonment with hard labour," enacts, "that after the commencement of this act (1 Oct. 1837) it shall not be lawful for any court to direct that any offender shall be kept in solitary confinement for any longer periods than one month at a time, or than three months in the space of one year." (1) With or without hard labour. See sec. 3, infra. (m) Ante, p. 411. (n) With or without hard labour. See the next section. CHAPTER THE THIRTY-THIRD. 8 Rich. 2, any judge, &c., OF THE FORGING, ALTERING, &c., OF RECORDS AND JUDICIAL PROCESS. It is clear that, by the common law, a person may be guilty of forgery by falsely and fraudulently making or altering any matter of record: for, since the law gives the highest credit to all records, it cannot but be of the utmost ill consequence to the public to have them either forged or falsified. (a) If, therefore, a man should insert in an indictment the names of those against whom in truth it was not found, it would be forgery. (b) Even if the offence should not constitute a forgery: yet in no instance can the counterfeiting or alteration of any judicial process or matter be less than a very high misdemeanor, as tending to stop or impede the course of justice, or to encroach upon the judicial power. (c) The defacing or rasure of any record, without due authority, is an offence at common law, highly punishable by fine and imprisonment. (d) And it has been holden that any person making or knowingly using a false affidavit, taken abroad, (though a forging could not be assignable on it here,) in order to mislead our own courts, and to prevent public justice, is punishable by indictment for a misdemeanor. (e) Judges are highly punishable at common law for offences of this kind. (f) And the statute 8 Rich. 2, c. 4, applies expressly to Judges as well as to clerks. The 8 Rich. 2, c. 4, enacts, that "if any judge or clerk" offend by the false entering of pleas, rasing of rolls, or changing of verdicts, falsely entering to the disherison of any one, he shall be punished by paying a fine to the King, and making satisfaction to the party. pleas, &c. (a) 1 Hawk. P. C. c. 70, s. 1, 8. Bac. Ab. Forgery (B). Roll. Ab. 65, 76. Yelv. 146. Cro. Eliz. 178. (b) Rex v. Marsh and others, 3 Mod. 66. 1 Hawk. P. C. c. 70, s. 2. (c) 2 East, P. C. c. 19, s. 9, p. 366. (d) 3 Inst. 71, 72. 1 Hale, 646. Hawk. P. C. c. 47, s. 1. 1 (e) Omealy v. Newell, 8 East. 364. And see Fawcett's case, 2 East, P. C. c. 19, s. 7, p. 862. Ante, p. 360. (f) 3 Inst. 72. 1 Hale, 646. In 3 Inst. 72, the case of Justice Ingham (or Hengham, or as Hawkins says, Ingram) who was a judge in the reign of Edward I., is mentioned thus: He paid "eight hundred marks for a fine, for that a poore man being fined in an action of debt at thirteen shillings four-pence, the said justice, moved with pity, caused the roll to be rased, and made it six shillings eight-pence. This case Justice Southcot remembered, when Catlyn, Chiefe Justice of the King's Bench, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, would have ordered a rasure of a roll in the like case, which Southcot, one of the Judges of that Court, utterly denied to assent unto, and said openly, that he meant not to build a clock-house; for (said he) with the fine that Ingham paid for the like matter, the clock-house at Westminster was builded, and furnished with a clock, which continueth to this day." Forging the royal sign The 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, s. 11, enacts," that if any person shall forge 1 Wm. 4, c. or counterfeit, or shall utter knowing the same to be forged or 66, s. 11. counterfeited, the great seal of the United Kingdom, his Majesty's great seal, privy seal, any privy signet of his Majesty, his Majesty's royal sign privy seal, manual, any of his Majesty's seals appointed by the twenty-fourth privy signet, article of the union to be kept, used, and continued in Scotland, the manual, &c., great seal of Ireland, or the privy seal of Ireland, every such offender treason. shall be guilty of high treason, and shall suffer death accordingly: (g) provided always, that nothing contained in an act passed in the seventh year of the reign of King William the Third, entitled' an act for regulating of trials in cases of treason and misprision of treason,' or in an act passed in the seventh year of the reign of Queen Anne, intituled an act for improving the union of the two kingdoms,' shall extend to any indictment, or to any proceedings thereupon, for any of the treasons hereinbefore mentioned." 52 Geo. 3, The 52 Geo. 3, c. 143, enacts, "that if any person shall make, forge, or counterfeit, or cause or procure to be made, forged, or counterfeited, the mark or hand of the receiver of the prefines at the alienation office, upon any writ of covenant, whereby such receiver or any other shall or person may be defrauded, or suffer any loss thereby; every person so offending, and being thereof convicted, the alienation shall be adjudged guilty of felony, and shall suffer death as a felon, office. without benefit of clergy." (h) receiver of c. 94. By the 1 & 2 Vict. c. 94, s. 1, the records in the Tower of 1 & 2 Vict. London, Chapter House of Westminster, Roll's Chapel, Petty Bag Office, offices in the custody of the Queen's Remembrancer of the Exchequer, or of any other officer of the Exchequer, Augmentation Office, First Fruits and Tenths' Office, office of the Land Revenue and Enrolments, of the late auditor of the land revenues of England and Wales, and the records lately deposited in the office of the Pells of the Exchequer, and now in the custody of her Majesty's Comptroller of the Exchequer, the records belonging to the Courts of Chancery, Exchequer, and Admiralty, Queen's Bench, Common Pleas, and Marshalsea, the records of the lately abolished Courts of Wales and of Chester, Durham, and of the Isle of Ely, are placed under the charge of the Master of the Rolls. (i) And by sec. 8, (g) The present punishment is transportation for life, or for any term not less than seven years, or imprisonment for any term not exceeding four nor less than two years, with or without hard labour, in the common gaol or house of correction; and the offender may be directed to be kept in solitary confinement for any portion or portions of such imprisonment, not exceeding one month at any one time, and not exceeding three months in any one year, as to the court in its discretion shall seem meet. See the 1 Vict. c. 84, ss. 2 and 3, ante, p. 413. The 2 & 3 Wm. 4, c. 123, ante, p. 411, took away the punishment of death in all cases of forgery, except the forging of wills and powers of attorney, and substituted transportation for life in its place. In treason there are no accessories, but all are principals. Fost. 341, C. S. G. (h) The 52 Geo. 3, c. 143, not being expressly repealed by the 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, and the forgeries mentioned in the 52 Geo. 3, c. 143, not being made capital (i) By sec. 2, the Queen in Council Certifying as true any false copy of records a felony. a public record office is to be established, and by sec. 12, the Master of the Rolls may allow a copy to be made of any of the said records, which is to be "certified as a true and authentic copy by the deputy keeper of the records, or one of the assistant record keepers," and to "be sealed or stamped with the seal of the record office;" and by sec. 13, such copies are made evidence. By sec. 19, "every person belonging to or employed in the said public record office, who shall certify any writing as a true and authentic copy of a record in the custody of the Master of the Rolls, knowing the same to be false in any material part, and every person who shall counterfeit the signature of an assistant record keeper for the purpose of counterfeiting a certified copy of a record, or shall forge or counterfeit the seal of the public record office, shall be guilty of felony, and being duly convicted thereof, shall be liable at the discretion of the court to be transported beyond the seas for life, or for any term not less than seven years, or to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding four years." By sec. 20, the word "records" means "all rolls, records, writs, books, proceedings, decrees, bills, warrants, accounts, papers, and documents whatsoever of a public nature belonging to her Majesty, or now deposited in any of the offices or places of custody before mentioned." (j) (j) The act contains no provision as to principals in the second degree or accessories. But the principals in the second degree are punishable as principals in the first degree, according to the general rule 4 Bl. Com. 39, and the accessories, as for a felony not specially provided for, under the 7 & 8 Geo. 4, c. 28, s. 8 and 9, and 1 Vict. c. 90, s. 5. See note (b), ante, p. 135. CHAPTER THE THIRTY-FOURTH. OF FORGERIES RELATING TO THE PUBLIC FUNDS, AND THE of public stock any other THE 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, s. 5, enacts “That if any person shall wilfully 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, make any false entry in, or wilfully alter any word or figure in, any of s. 5. Making false the books of account kept by the governor and company of the Bank entries in the of England, or by the governor and company of Merchants of Great books in which Britain trading to the South Seas and other parts of America, and the accounts for encouraging the fishery, commonly called the South Sea Com- are kept; or pany, in which books the accounts of the owners of any stock, transfer of annuities, or other public funds which now are or hereafter may be public stock in transferable at the Bank of England or at the South Sea House, shall name than the be entered and kept, or shall in any manner wilfully falsify the true owner's. accounts of such owners in any of the said books, with intent in any of the cases aforesaid to defraud any person whatsoever; or if any person shall wilfully make any transfer of any share or interest of or in any stock, annuity, or other public fund which now is or hereafter may be transferable at the Bank of England, or at the South Sea House, in the name of any person not being the true and lawful owner of such share or interest, with intent to defraud any person whatsoever; every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and, being convicted thereof, shall suffer death as a felon.” (a) public stock By sec. 6, "if any person shall forge or alter, or shall utter, Sec. 6. knowing the same to be forged or altered, any transfer of any share Forging a or interest of or in any stock, annuity, or other public fund which transfer of any now is or hereafter may be transferable at the Bank of England or or of certain at the South Sea House, or of or in the capital stock of any body other stock; corporate, company, or society which now is or hereafter may be power of established by charter or act of parliament, or shall forge or alter, transfer the or shall utter, knowing the same to be forged or altered, any power same, or reof attorney (b) or other authority to transfer any share or interest of ceive dividends or in any such stock, annuity, public fund, or capital stock, as is transfer of (a) The 2 & 3 Wm. 4, c. 123, ante, p. 411, took away the punishment of death from these offences, and the present punishment under the 1 Vict. c. 84, ss. 2 & 3, is that mentioned in note (g), ante, p. 415. For the general provisions of the 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, see ante, p. 408, et seq.; and for the punishment of principals in the second degree and accessories, see ante, p. 410. C. S. G. (b) The 2 & 3 Wm. 4, c. 123, abolished the punishment of death for all the offences VOL. II. mentioned in this section, except forging E E attorney to thereon; stock or re |